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In a bid to make its open source database more scalable and available, MySQL AB on Tuesday acquired Alzato, maker of the NDB Cluster – a data management system designed for the telecom and IP environments.

MySQL said it plans to integrate Alzato’s NDB Cluster into a future release of a MySQL database version and market it as a high availability clustering data management system geared towards telecom, network applications and heavy-load Web sites.

“With demonstrated scalability up to 32 nodes, NDB Cluster technology will extend the cost-efficient scalability of the MySQL database to provide carrier-grade availability and high throughput in a clustered environment,” said Marten Mikos, CEO of MySQL in a statement. “The MySQL database is evolving to address a broader range of applications and markets, and technologies like NDB Cluster will help us reach our technology and company goals faster.”

MySQL, based in Uppsala, Sweden said the NDB Cluster-enabled version of the MySQL database is slated for release next year.

Noel Yuhanna, senior industry analyst at Forrester Research Inc. in Santa Clara, Calif,. said the integration of the NDB Cluster technology will help MySQL move its product into areas where users are looking for high availability. MySQL is currently having more success in the mid-market than the large enterprise, where higher availability is generally needed, he said.

“I think it’s a great move by MySQL because customers are concerned about the availability and scalability of open source databases,” Yuhanna said. He added that while the NDB Cluster technology gives MySQL a stronger foundation, the database will still lack key transactional features such as triggers and stored procedures, which he said would make MySQL shine.

Despite these shortcomings, Yuhanna said he thinks open source databases will become increasingly popular over the next two to three years as companies look for lower cost, alternative solutions to expensive proprietary software.

MySQL has been hard at work in the past few months, forming partnerships with other vendors. In September, Novell Inc. announced it would be shipping MySQL with its NetWare 6.5. In August MySQL partnered with Pogo Linux Inc. to build the DataWare 2600 server, a fully open source database geared towards the mid-market. During the same month MySQL also announced an agreement with SAP AG whereby it will be rebranding SAP’s SAP DB, and calling it MAX DB. SAP DB is SAP’s enterprise-level open source database, and MySQL also has the license to develop and market future releases of SAP DB, or MAX DB.

Alzato, a venture company started by Ericsson Business Innovation AB in 2000, is based in Hagersten, Sweden.